How much does cleaning business insurance cost?

Cleaning business insurance cost at a glance

There's no single price for cleaning business insurance, but there are useful starting points. Two large online marketplaces report median GL premiums of $48 and $59 a month for cleaning businesses. Both figures are for the common setup: $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate. Medians sit in the middle of what customers paid, so half paid less and half paid more.

A third source models janitorial firms higher, at about $118 a month for the same limits. NerdWallet reports about $750 a year for janitorial GL. It puts workers' comp near $2,500 a year, using data from an online brokerage.

Your price depends on the payroll in each class code, your annual sales, the kinds of buildings you clean, how much specialty and chemical work you do, the vehicles your crews drive, your claims history and the limits your contracts require.

What each coverage costs a commercial cleaning company

Treat these as rough benchmarks. None of them is a quote, and the crime figure isn't specific to cleaning. A janitorial bond's price usually depends on the bond amount and how many employees it covers, and some bonding companies also weigh your credit or time in business.

Why published averages miss most commercial janitorial companies

The marketplace numbers describe a small company. One of those marketplaces describes its typical cleaning customer: under five people on staff, revenue somewhere between $50,000 and $200,000-plus, and no more than five years old.

That isn't a contractor with 40 people on night crews across office parks and medical clinics. For that company, a monthly median says very little. The figures that matter are your payroll in each class, the rate for each class in your state, your sales, and the limits written into each insurance exhibit. Underwriters also ask how many vans you run and who drives them.

Read a monthly figure as a rough guide for a small account, not a forecast for yours. The rest of this guide shows how each line is built, so you can check a quote and price insurance into a bid.

How workers' comp is priced for janitorial payroll

Workers' comp starts with simple math. The carrier divides each class's payroll by 100, multiplies by that class's rate and adds the classes together. Then your experience mod raises or lowers the result. Learn more on our workers' comp for cleaning companies page.

In many states, janitorial crews fall under class 9014, for janitorial work done by contractors. Code titles and numbers can differ by state and rating bureau. Office staff (8810) and outside sales (8742) carry far lower rates, so how you record each person's work matters.

A worked Indiana example

Example scenario: a contractor in Indiana runs $400,000 of crew payroll and $60,000 of office payroll. At the advisory rates the state's rating bureau published for January 1, 2026, the crew line is $400,000 ÷ 100 × $1.203, or $4,812. The office line is $60,000 ÷ 100 × $0.073, or about $44. That's roughly $4,856 before the mod, carrier pricing and fees.

With a 0.90 mod, the same payroll lands near $4,370. With a 1.20 mod, it climbs near $5,827. Carriers may price above or below the bureau's figures. Indiana's minimum premium for class 9014 is $539, so even a tiny crew pays a floor.

The audit and the mod

The comp premium you pay up front is only a deposit based on the payroll you expect. When the policy year ends, an auditor checks what you really paid in each class. If the real number beats the estimate, the carrier sends an extra bill; if it falls short, money comes back. Cleaners paid on a 1099 and subcontractors with no comp certificate of their own are where most surprise bills start. In North Carolina, for example, the rating manual adds an uninsured sub's payroll to your premium. If no payroll records exist, the full subcontract price can count as payroll. Our guide to janitorial class codes and audits walks through it.

The mod compares your last three years of claims with similar employers. A mod of 1.00 is neutral, a credit is below 1.00 and a debit is above it. The formula weighs the first part of each claim more heavily, so many small injuries can hurt a mod more than you'd expect.

Ohio and Texas work differently

Ohio employers get comp from the state fund, the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation, not from private carriers. Private carriers can add stop-gap employer's liability, often on the GL. See our Ohio cleaning insurance page. In Texas, most private employers may choose not to carry comp, though many commercial contracts still ask for it. Our Texas page covers the trade-offs.

Get a quote for your cleaning business →

What drives the price of your other coverages

Each line has its own drivers. Knowing them helps you read a quote and explain it to a facility manager who asks why your bid is higher than the last company's.

General liability: your buildings and your sales

GL responds when your work hurts someone outside your company or damages what they own. Picture a tenant who slips on a wet floor in a lobby your porter just mopped. Underwriters look at your sales, your payroll and the mix of buildings you clean. Office suites usually read as simpler work than medical clinics or manufacturing plants. Floor stripping, carpet extraction and post-construction cleanup add questions too. See our general liability guide for what the policy usually covers.

Janitorial bond and crime: the amount and who holds the keys

A janitorial bond is usually one of the smallest lines on your bill because the bond amount is often modest. The price climbs with the amount a client asks for. A bond is a promise to the client, not insurance for you. Depending on the bond wording, the bonding company may seek repayment from your company after it pays a claim.

Crime coverage pays when an employee steals from your company. With clients' property coverage, added by endorsement or as its own insuring agreement on newer forms, it can also cover theft of client property. Its price follows the limit and how many people handle keys, alarm codes and client property. Underwriters may ask about background checks and your key log. Read more about employee dishonesty coverage.

Commercial auto: vans and crews' own cars

Company vans go on commercial auto, priced on the vehicles, the drivers' records and the limits you pick. If supervisors use their own cars to get between buildings, ask about hired and non-owned auto (HNOA), which protects the company itself. A personal auto policy may limit business use, so don't assume it fills the gap.

Umbrella: the amount the contract names

An umbrella adds limits above your GL, auto and employer's liability. It's sold in $1 million steps. A contract that asks for $3 million of liability can often be met with $1 million of GL plus a $2 million umbrella. Carriers want set underlying limits first. Read about umbrella insurance for cleaning companies.

Cleaning business insurance cost as your company grows

Your bill grows in steps, and each step usually comes from a contract or a hire.

The first contract that asks for a certificate

An owner-operator with a few office buildings usually starts with GL and a janitorial bond. If you drive your own car to jobs, ask about HNOA. This is where the low monthly medians fit best.

The first W-2 crew

Hiring brings workers' comp and the payroll audit. From here on, your payroll by class drives your largest premium.

The first van

A company van adds commercial auto. Each added van and driver adds premium.

The portfolio contract

A property manager with many sites, or a public bid, may ask for more. For example, one Ohio township's 2026 janitorial RFP asked for $1 million / $2 million GL, $1 million of auto liability, a $2 million umbrella and a BWC certificate. Expect a larger bond and additional insured wording on your certificate of insurance too.